


Dominoes

by rennerfan_1



Category: Jeremy Renner - Fandom
Genre: Break Up, F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-05
Updated: 2014-02-05
Packaged: 2018-01-11 07:38:32
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,366
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1170419
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rennerfan_1/pseuds/rennerfan_1
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This is a fic based on the breakup of Jeremy and Jes, and by no means does it represent what actually happened in the relationship. In other words, this is for entertainment purposes only.</p><p>Also, this one-shot is the background for a fic I am going to be stirring eventually.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Dominoes

**Author's Note:**

  * For [dawncasa](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=dawncasa).



The intense heat and humidity of the barren desert is unwelcoming and unfriendly, hot and dry and completely desolate of any happiness and life. The Jordan desert is an unproductive and lonely place, despite the activity of the crew that is mulling around, slow and lethargic from the heat. Jeremy sits on the step that leads into the camper van that they keep on site, sipping water that does nothing to quench his thirst. He runs his hand over his head, willing the headache to go away so he can think a bit more clearly and concentrate on what he's going to be doing in the next scene, and he knows it's nearly impossible to complete the easiest of tasks inside that helmet and suit. Sand sticks to his sweaty skin as he wanders over to the crew who are preparing the next scene and even the stone buildings do nothing to shield him from the heat. A breeze would be nice or even a freezing cold swimming pool, but it only lasts for so long and he's back to being a slave again to the elements. This role is more demanding than he's ever done before, a real challenge that is taking it's toll already. Finishing the bottle of water, Jeremy pulls on the bomb suit and already he is overheating and once the helmet is on, even the Devil himself would be screaming for a cold shower. His movements are staggered as he tries to walk right and wanders to the left, one of the crew grabbing his arm and guiding him to where he needs to be as the cameras start rolling.

****

In the weeks that followed, Jeremy and several of the other cast and crew members were unwell with heat stroke after spending so much time in the hot and barren desert. It didn't matter how much they drank because they quickly lost it again and the symptoms grew worse as they tried to stay cool, drink fluids and simply function. Jeremy had called his long term girlfriend, Jes several times during the time he was excused from the set and naturally she worried about him, but something hung between the couple like a nasty smell.   
He had read the letters several times over and although they weren't detailed with personal information, he could physically see the strain in every word. They had argued and fought before he left and the feud hadn't been resolved and it wouldn't be until they got together again, which was an extra weight on the actor's mind. He could feel himself losing control of absolutely everything and he didn't know how to stop it and he blamed the heat for his lack of logical thinking. He loved Jes, there wasn't any doubt, but he started to doubt whether she still loved him. 

 

A deep depression has been working on him since he arrived in Jordan and the heat and lack of physical and mental energy is doing nothing to help how he feels. Jeremy paces the makeshift compound which is part of the set and part of their living quarters, a cigarette dangling from his lips as he tries to figure out what he's going to say to Jes. Her last voicemail had been....unpleasant and it gave him food for thought as he slipped further off the edge and into a pool of insanity. He tucks his cell back into his pocket and returns to his cabin, stripping off down to his boxers as he tries to cool down. He gulps down more water and lights up a second cigarette, eyeing the phone on the bed as he tears sting his eyes. He shouldn't be feeling like this and he hates it, how he has no control over anything and most especially his thoughts that have started to scare him. His illogical mind is planting seeds of suspicion, that the reason why Jes isn't answering his calls is because she is with someone else, someone with a less demanding career and who can be at home most nights of the week. Jeremy drags his palms across his face and all he can taste is sand. He wants the hell out of Jordan, sooner rather than later and that isn't going to happen any time soon.

**** Home*****

By the end of the shoot, Jeremy can barely function as he prepares to go home and packs up his things as if he's on autopilot. He is glad to be getting away from the heat and sand and barren wasteland he had been stuck in, but going home also meant other difficulties he isn't ready for. The truth is, he isn't exactly sure what's going on between him and Jes and it feels like months since he's last seen her. He misses her and wishes he could wake up to her every day of the shoot and it would maybe make each day a little more bearable. He can't wait to see her and at the same time, he doesn't want to. He doesn't want to believe that things could get worse before they could get better. 

However, the transition from life in Jordan back to his old life wasn't easy. In the time they spent together as a couple, they argued and fought like they were each other's worst enemies and spent hours, sometimes even days in awkward silences and glaring at one another. But even Jes realised that Jeremy wasn't completely himself.

At night he would toss and turn, lay awake until a godforsaken hour of the morning that not even the birds would sing about and then he would try and function on coffee and cigarettes. His moods were seriously effected by his time in the desert and any time Jes tried to help, he pushed her away and she stopped trying to help. She hated seeing him so zombie like, like something out of a horror movie or worse, something out of a lunatic asylum. Jes didn't know how to help him and all their troubles, all their disagreements and differences of opinions seemed to be the only thing they talked about it and both of them were miserable. It was like they were two people who had just met, who barely knew one another and were drifting further and further apart. Jeremy just hoped he could salvage his relationship with Jes.

While Jeremy left to promote The Hurt Locker, it gave Jes and Jeremy some space to figure out exactly what they wanted from the relationship. They had once been happy without a care in the world, but Jeremy had changed and everything had become too much for him to handle. Jes on the other hand took the time to relax and it felt good to be no longer walking on eggshells. But that changed once Jeremy won an award for his performance in The Hurt Locker.

******************************************  
One Year Later

The last year had been tense, filled with comings and goings and naturally there was rows and disagreements between Jes and Jeremy, but what really put the icing on the cake was when Jeremy was presented an award by a costar who he had worked with previously. Charlize Theron had given a very moving speech, but it had brought trouble to the couple. On stage, Charlize had hinted openly about some sort of affair with Jeremy and commented that he was hot and he acted in a dignified manner when he accepted it, but his longterm girlfriend Jes was not happy. It had led to several arguments and rows and she was naturally mortified, sad and furious that even the media were paying them unwanted attention and what was supposed to be a happy occasion, was soured by Charlize's comments and everyone else's assumptions. It seemed that the couple argued more and more after that, both of them knowing what really happened that night and only time would tell whether it ove them apart or brought them closer together.

 

Once Jeremy had said in an interview that Jes was like a guy with boobs and it was meant in the most charming of ways and one time in an interview, Jes described herself in exactly the same way and while people believed that opposites attract, this wasn't the case for Jes and Jeremy. They enjoyed a lot of the same things and weren't just lovers, but best friends. But with recent events always reminding them of their problems in the background, their relationship once again took a turn for the worse.

****

Jeremy dumps his bag in the hallway of their apartment and heads into the kitchen for a well deserved cold drink after that gym session and sees that everything is neat and tidy. A pile of freshly ironed laundry sits on the kitchen table with socks in their pairs and after grabbing a bottle of water, he goes into their bedroom to see what Jes is up to.

"Hey, mama." He says brightly at the soft of Jes standing there and his smile fades as he notices the suitcases on the bed, filled with her clothes. "What's going on?"

"You were supposed to be home two hours ago. I told you this morning that we needed to talk and you are just home."

"I was at the gym." He answers as he tries to work out what the hell is going on.

Jes continues to empty her side of the wardrobe and folds it into the cases, her actions frantic but deliberate with purpose. 

"You've been gone six hours." She says finally. "It doesn't take that long to work out at the gym."

"I went for a run before I got started. I didn't think I had been gone that long"

"You were." She answers heatedly."And your cell was off"

She doesn't need to turn around to see Jeremy checking his cell and turning it back on, because she knows him

"What's this really about, Jes?" He asks, watching her."Ever since I got back you've been acting like...I don't even know, weird."

"You've finally just noticed?"

Her comment is quick and snappy. She shakes her head with a sigh and zips up the first case.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm leaving." She answers. "But I didn't think you would have noticed."

 

"Of course I would have noticed if you weren't here."

"Really?" She asks and doesn't give him time to answer. "When was the last time we did anything, like go out or even watch a movie? When was the last time we did anything remotely normal in this relationship?"

"We went out to dinner last week."

"Only because I had to force you." Jes says impatiently with a sigh. "You've changed, Jeremy. You don't seem to care about anything anymore and it all got worse after you filmed the Hurt Locker. It's like you don't care about anything except work."

"That's not fair, Jes. I do care about you."

"You've told me that before." She answers dryly."We are just going around in circles."

"I can change, okay? I'll take a break and we can go on vacation and-"

"And a vacation isn't going to make it any better." She cuts him off.

Jeremy doesn't know what to say or how to make things right between them. He knows he hasn't been the same since Jordan and he figured that whatever was going on with him would at least be fixed or even gone by now.

"Charlize called when you were out. She said she would see you at the awards thing next week."

"Is that what this is about?" He asks and it all clicks into place. "Mama, what happened was a one time thing and I would never do that to you again."

"It doesn't matter, but she loved rubbing it in my face at the awards and she pretty much told the whole world you two were fucking."

"It was once." He says firmly."We were both drunk and it just happened."

"And since then she's been trying to get under my skin about it. She always brings it up and I'm sick of it. I'm sick of wondering where you are every day and who you're with."

"I'm not with anyone, Jes." He says with reason. "You're the one I love and who I'm with. I would never screw around on you."

"Too late for that."

Jes throws more things onto the top of the second suitcase and she glances up at the man she had loved for the last six years, the man she expected to live with for the rest of her life and it had all changed.

"I can't do this, Jeremy. It's not just about that, it's about how I don't even know you anymore." She says as she struggles to compose herself. "I'm sorry, but there's no other way."

"We can work this out, Jes. We can go to couple therapy and just see what happens. We can make us work."

"I'm not sure than we can." She says finally as tears spill down her cheeks."I love you, but I can't trust you."

"Please, we can make this right if you just give me another chance. I swear that what happened that night was the first and last time."

"You can't make those promises." Jes answers. "And we both know you can't keep them."

Jes zips up the second suitcase and tries to juggle them both downstairs, an emotional Jeremy trying to convince her to stay as she unhooks the apartment key from her car keys. 

"Please, Jes." He sniffles, begging."One more chance."

"I love you and I don't trust you and with whatever is going on inside that head of yours, you need you need to figure it out. I'm sorry."

 

 

Jeremy had watched Jes as she drove away and she didn't tell him where she was going. Still in shock and grieving for their relationship, he broke down. He lost it completely. And he knew he would never be able to love someone again like he did with Jes, and in his own words to family and friends, he had found and lost his soulmate.


End file.
